Our efforts to protect bats worldwide start with our expert Endangered Species Interventions team, which has been at the forefront of successful efforts to protect Nakanacagi Cave in Fiji, conserve Stony Hill Cave in Jamaica, and successfully deliver large-scale agave restoration for Endangered bats in the southwestern United States and northern Mexico. Recently, we brought on team members in Brazil and India to strengthen our work in those regions, as well as Africa, with new work in Kenya, Mozambique, and beyond.

ew people have heard of the striped leaf-nosed bat (Macronycteris vittata). This large African bat is found in various populations across the continent, notably in larger colonies in Eastern and Southern Africa and smaller colonies in Western and Central Africa. While the striped leaf-nosed bat is an interesting species for many reasons, it needs to be better studied. Bat Conservation International (BCI) and partners are setting out to change that.

“Species-specific research on African bat species is so incredibly rare,” says Natalie Weber, a conservation scientist who works with BCI as Strategic Advisor for Endangered Species in Africa. “Unfortunately, the only efforts targeting this species were based on trying to find some viruses. But that’s not research on the species.”

n April, Melquisedec Gamba-Rios, Ph.D., and Jennifer Barros, Ph.D., placed small infrared lights in a tight tunnel-like passageway in Jamaica’s St. Clair Cave. Air temperatures outside the cave were approaching 90 degrees Fahrenheit, and humidity levels were very high. Inside, it was at least 10 degrees warmer—and wetter.

St. Clair Cave is one of the most important cave systems for bats in the Caribbean, with more than two million bats and 10 bat species, including the Critically Endangered Jamaican greater funnel-eared bats (Natalus jamaicensis). Gamba-Rios, Bat Conservation International (BCI)’s Regional Director in Latin America and the Caribbean, and Barros, BCI’s Brazil Program Manager, used infrared lights to minimize disturbing the bats and placed themselves near the bats’ exit. Soon, the bats began exiting the cave to scour the skies for insects, and look for fruit and nectar.

n an April day in Chinchiná, Colombia, a group of bat conservationists put their acting skills to the test. Pretending to be an audience of schoolchildren, their roleplay helped Indonesian bat researcher Ellena Yusti refine a short improvised “elevator speech” explaining her work to a younger audience. Since bat conservationists must be able to communicate with everyone from kids to government officials to the general public, the exercise was a valuable chance to practice her skills in front of supportive colleagues. This was one of many memorable experiences during the inaugural workshop for the exciting new MENTOR-Bat program, a partnership between Bat Conservation International (BCI) and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS).

Designed to promote long-term protection for bats and ecosystems by building capacity in key geographic regions, MENTOR-Bat brings together established and emerging bat conservationists from Colombia, Cameroon, and Indonesia in three cohorts, each consisting of one mentor and three fellows. Over 18 months, participants engage in virtual and in-person meetings, training opportunities, and workshops related to bat conservation and implementing bat conservation projects. The program also emphasizes One Health, focusing on protecting people and bats.

Pd was first detected in Texas in 2017. Texas has numerous cave systems and cave-hibernating bat species, such as cave myotis (Myotis velifer) and tricolored bats (Perimyotis subflavus), most vulnerable to WNS.